6 Telepresence Robots That Bring the Office to You

Dialing into the office network via VPN isn’t exactly personal. Telepresence robots, however, are. These rolling devices with tablets for heads allow workers, medical professionals, teachers and students to participate in a working environment without being physically present. With a telepresence robot, a businessperson could walk the halls with a peer while discussing a proposal, or sick students could participate in the day’s lessons as if they were sitting right in the classroom.

AnyBots QB Avatar ($9,700)

This robot has a built-in display that's smaller than the competition's, because AnyBots aims to make a small footprint with the QB Avatar (it takes up only as much space as a person and weighs 32 pounds). Users connect via Wi-Fi to a video-conferencing client using their system's webcam. The height is adjustable, from 2 feet, 8 inches to 6 feet, 2 inches, so remote users can interact with those sitting down or standing up. Although it's currently impossible for a telepresence robot to climb stairs, the QB Avatar can ascend and descend ADA-compliant ramps. This robot can also work in multiple professional environments multiple audiences, and AnyBots points out that personal users, as well as small and medium-sized businesses and enterprises, could benefit from the QB.